Girls' basketball: Seeley lifts Poland past Lake Region in 3OT

Poland Regional High Schoolâs Sarah Moody, left, blocks the lane in front of Lake Region High Schoolâs Shauna Hancock during their game in Poland on Saturday. Hancock was called for a charge on the play. (Justin Pelletier/Sun Journal)

POLAND â" Friday night, Poland girlsâ basketball coach Tim Dolley told Jessica Seeley that some time this season she would be at the free-throw line with a game would be be in her hands.

Saturday night, it was.

Seeley made a free throw with 1.8 second left in the third overtime to give the Knights a 53-52 win over Lake Region.

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âItâs kind of ironic that tonight was the night,â Dolley said. âShe just said it in the locker room, âCoach, you told me I was going win this game tonight.â I said, âAbsolutely.ââ

Seeley also scored on a hard drive about two minutes earlier put Poland up by three points, 51-48. She also made a steal with 1:14 left in the game. Nine of her 19 points game during the three overtime periods.

âIâm telling you, she makes me so proud every time,â Dolley said. âShe works so hard, and the effort is what gets her to be successful. She just never quits. And to play 44 minutes all night, and it didnât look like she was exhausted. And to play great defense on True tonight was â¦ I was very proud of her.â

Polandâs Nathalie Theriault won the opening tip, and the Knights proceeded to work the ball around for a full minute, patiently looking for an open shot.

That shot never materialized on that possession, but the tone was set â" it was going to be that type of game.

The teams were tied after one quarter, and Poland led 18-16 at halftime and 28-27 after three quarters. The entire second half, points were so hard hard to com e by that if felt as if each basket was critical.

Lake Region took the gameâs largest lead, 38-32, late in the fourth quarter, and Polandâs chances looked bleak.

Ally Gagne made one of two free throws for Poland that cut the lead to 38-33 with 2:28 left. Soon after, Theriault stole the ball and took it the hoop for a layup, making it 38-35.

After Lauren Jakobsâ free throw pushed the Lakersâ lead to 39-35, Morgan Brousseauâs bucket got the Knights to within two, 39-37.

Then, with 40 seconds left, Theriault was fouled and went to the line and made both ends of a one-and-one to tie the game and 39-39, effectively sending the game to overtime.

âIâm just proud of all the girls,â Dolley said. âThey didnât give up. At one point, we were down six points in regulation, and for them to battle back â" just a total team effort.â

Poland (5-2) was dealt an early blow when Theriault fouled out a minute into the extra session.

Lake Region led until the final minute of the first overtime when Brousseau hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 44-41 with 40 seconds left.

Brousseau, playing with four fouls, then drew a charge at the other end of the court, but the Knights werenât able to turn that into points, and the game went to a second overtime.

Seeley scored off an assist by Brousseau to make it 46-44. Jakobs tied it at 46-46, and that was all of the scoring in the second overtime.

Before the game went to a third overtime, Poland suffered another big loss when Brousseau fouled out with 2.8 seconds left.

With her fellow seniors on the bench, Seeley said, âI just knew that I have to take a bigger part on.â

Dolley said that he splits the players up in practice so they get used to playing effectively without certain key players, such as Theriault and Brousseau.

âTo make sure, in a situation like that, we can not skip a beat, and not rely heavily on one player,â Dolley said.

In the third extra frame, Jakobs and Seeley traded baskets â" as they inexplicably did several times throughout the game â" to make it 48-48.

Sophie Vallee made a free throw to give Poland a 49-48 lead. The Knights drabbed the offensive rebound after Vallee missed the second, and Seeley scored on an aggressive drive to the hoop to put Poland up by three, 51-48.

âI knew we needed to score. I knew we needed the energy, so you just kind of got to go,â Seeley said.

After Lake Regionâs Aisley Sturkâs free throw decreased the deficit to two points, Polandâs Amandalynn Gagne, who didnât play until the final overtime, pushed the lead back to three with a free throw.

âIâm giving props to my bench,â Dolley said. âI tell you there were some huge, key plays, with Ally, and Amanda hitting those free throws â" barely playing any minutes, and stepping up there and just knock them down is excellent, excellent.â

With sev en seconds left, Rachel Sanks made a pair of clutch free throws to tie the game.

The game seemed on its way to a fourth overtime until Seeley drew a foul and when to the line with 1.8 second left. She missed the first, but made the second.

âWe practice a lot in practice,â Seeley said. âMissed the first one, and I was kind of scared. The second one, I knew I had to make it, so I just did the same thing as I always practice.â

Jakobs finished with a game-high 22 points for Lake Region, and True added 15, nine of which came on foul shots.

The loss is only the Lakersâ (6-2) second of the season, and their first to a fellow Class B school.

âI thought you had two teams who played really hard and competed on the floor,â Lake Region coach Paul True said.

Poland Regional High Schoolâs Lexy Grondin, left, drives past Lake Region High Schoolâs Aisley Sturk during their game in Poland on Saturday. (Justin Pelletier/Sun Journal)Poland Regional High Schoolâs Nathalie Theriault, right, stuffs Lauren Jakobs on her way to the basket during their game in Poland on Saturday. (Justin Pelletier/Sun Journal)Lake Region High Schoolâs Lauren Jakobs, right, gathers the ball as she runs up the court in front of Poland Regional High Schoolâs Morgan Brousseau, center, as Polandâs Nathalie Theriault (11) waits on defense during their game in Poland on Saturday. (Justin Pelletier/Sun Journal)Lake Region High Schoolâs Shauna Hancock, left, runs the floor in front of Poland Regional High Schoolâs Jessica Seeley during their game in Poland on Saturday. (Just in Pelletier/Sun Journal)Lake Region High Schoolâs Melissa Bonenfant, left, tries to go up for a layup against Poland Regional High Schoolâs Sarah Moody during their game in Poland on Saturday. (Justin Pelletier/Sun Journal)